Erdogan’s warm relations with Trump give Turkey an advantage ahead of NATO summit

WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump has berated and belittled many of his European counterparts who are expected to attend next week’s NATO summit in Türkiye. But host Recep Tayyip Erdogan leveraged his close ties to the US leader to secure his presence at the Ankara event – ​​an appearance that could even come with a major Turkish defense-related gift.

“I wouldn’t have gone for most people,” Trump said last week. “But he called me. He said, ‘Please, I have it in Turkey. You need to be there. The United States needs to be there.’ “That’s why I’m doing it out of respect for President Erdogan.”

Leveraging that respect helped Erdogan avoid the disarray that Trump’s absence would cause within the alliance, particularly at a time when the Republican president has repeatedly threatened to withdraw U.S. forces from Europe and reduce America’s role in NATO, thereby destabilizing the allies.

Trump, who has often praised Erdogan and called him “a hell of a leader,” has long chastised other NATO countries over their defense spending. He said last year’s commitment to promote it collectively was a major personal victory. More recently, he clashed with alliance members for not supporting his war against Iran.

But Trump sweetened the deal with Erdogan by hinting he could make news during his visit over jet engines and the potential sale of F-35 fighter jets, banned for years because of Turkey’s proximity to Moscow.

Trump’s affinity for strongman leaders has long made him an admirer of Erdogan, who rose to power in Turkey first as prime minister and now in his 13th year as president.

“His relationship with Erdogan, which is quite strong, is consistent with what appears to be a pattern of his preferences,” said Philip Gordon, who served as national security adviser to Vice President Kamala Harris. “It has often been pointed out that he seems to have better relations with his adversaries and autocrats, and he certainly says nicer things about them than he does with his allies.”

Gordon, now at the Brookings Institution, added: “Erdogan is taking full advantage of this. »

Erdogan snubbed Biden but bets on Trump

Trump, who is expected to have a bilateral meeting with Erdogan on the sidelines of the NATO summit, will be the first US president to visit Turkey since Democrat Barack Obama in 2015. In contrast, Democratic President Joe Biden has kept Erdogan at arm’s length over Turkey’s democratic backsliding and close ties to Russia.

Opposition parties and human rights organizations have accused Erdogan of undermining democracy and restricting freedom of expression. They say baseless investigations and prosecutions of human rights activists, journalists, opposition politicians and others remain a persistent problem in Turkey.

Soner Cagaptay of the Washington Institute said Erdogan and Trump “clicked” personally during Trump’s first term. When Biden invited Erdogan to visit the United States in 2024 after Turkey approved Finland and Sweden’s NATO membership, Erdogan decided not to go.

“It was Erdogan’s way of signaling to Trump: ‘Hey, you’re probably going to win the election,’” Cagaptay said. “I think Trump saw this as a giant gesture.”

Trump announces measures in favor of the sale of planes to Turkey

During a meeting with NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte last week, a reporter asked Trump if he was taking “a big gift bag for Erdogan” on the trip, noting that Ankara wanted F-110 jet engines and F-35 fighter jets.

“Yes, I think so,” Trump replied. “Yeah, I’ll probably do something that will make him very happy.” Trump also suggested in September that the United States could soon begin selling F-35s to Turkey.

Turkey was excluded from the program in 2019, after purchasing Russian-made S-400 missile defense systems. U.S. officials fear that Turkey’s use of the Russian system could allow Moscow to gather information on the F-35’s capabilities.

At the Oval Office meeting, Vice President JD Vance said Washington was exploring ways to sell the planes to Turkey, stressing that any sale would ensure Turkey complies with US law. There is significant bipartisan opposition on Capitol Hill, including from influential Republicans such as Sen. Jim Risch of Idaho, chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, to the sale of the F-35s to Turkey as long as Ankara is in possession of Russian missile defense systems.

Meanwhile, the F-110 jet engines that Turkey is seeking to purchase would power its domestically produced KAAN fighter jets. Last week, the State Department took a step toward making those sales, sending key lawmakers a notice saying it planned to circumvent congressional opposition to more than $700 million in jet engine sales to Ankara, according to two people granted anonymity to discuss details of a nonpublic notice.

“In this case, the State Department didn’t even attempt to justify its decision,” New York Rep. Gregory Meeks, the top Democrat on the House Foreign Affairs Committee, said last week. “He invoked no emergency authority, failed to submit a written justification, and refused for months to make a good faith effort to inform me of the sale’s implications for U.S.-Turkey relations, Turkey’s continued possession of the Russian S-400 system, and other regional security concerns.”

U.S.-Turkey relations are also easing in other ways. Earlier this year, Trump’s Justice Department dropped a major case against Turkish state bank Halkbank, accused of helping Iran evade U.S. sanctions.

Erdogan praises Trump’s friendship and phone calls

Upon returning to the White House for his second term, Trump appointed a close friend as ambassador to Turkey: Tom Barrack, a longtime ally who also served as chairman of his inaugural committee. “Barrack plays a crucial role as a facilitator in the relationship,” said Ahmet Kasim Han, professor of international relations at TED University in Ankara.

Erdogan and Trump have had frequent phone calls to discuss Syria, Gaza and the Middle East as a whole, and Turkey has joined Trump’s Peace Council charged with overseeing the ceasefire in Gaza. Trump claimed this month that he had asked Erdogan to stay out of the Iran war and that the Turkish leader had complied, although there was no indication that Turkey ever intended to get involved.

Trump expressed his admiration for Erdogan even alongside Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu during a joint press conference last year. Netanyahu, whose government is at odds with Ankara, had hoped to win Trump’s support to push back Turkish influence in Syria, but found himself watching Trump praise Erdogan and urge Netanyahu to be “reasonable.”

Last year, after meeting with Trump at the NATO summit in The Hague, Erdogan told reporters that the US president was quick to respond to his calls, an anecdote that illustrates their close ties.

“Together with my friend Trump, we are opening the door to a new era in Turkish-American relations,” Erdogan said. “So far, the telephone diplomacy process between us has never exceeded 24 hours. When we call, the other party responds within 24 hours.”